D’s co-workers had been clamoring to meet him, so today S brought Munchkin into the Embassy and then to the Hail & Farewell – the first of what promises to be a busy transfer season. Along with all the new staff that joined the Mission recently, Munchkin also received an official welcome from the Ambassador, though he was too busy slurping down milk to appreciate the warm reception his arrival occasioned.

Spring has officially sprung in Moldova. In fact, the last few days have been so warm and sunny that it almost feels as if Chisinau has skipped the vernal season altogether and gone straight into summer.

In retrospect, it was probably overly optimistic to hope that a cross-Atlantic trip scheduled for April 1 from the tiny airport in Portland to an even smaller one in Chisinau would pass without some misadventure.